Turning Wood

An Information Technology Manager by day and a wood worker by night, Ray Overman finds that each job helps him come up with creative solutions for one while [he’s] working on the other. Like many artists, he does the majority of his studio work after his day job. Housed in a small 8×10 studio, he plies his creative skills into making tea pots, cryptic puzzle boxes, lidded vessels, cigar box and bowl guitars, bowls, vases, and the Stacked Stone series that represent a history of trail markers of cairns.

Ray Overman with some of his work

Having moved to the Charlotte area in 1998 with his wife Jenny, Overman feels extremely lucky. The area is full of creative and talented people, as well as gallerists and collectors that support my work. It doesn’t hurt to have the inspiration of the Mint Museums collection either. Overman’s venture into wood working began in 2001. “The business side came out of the necessity to fund my tool and sandpaper habits. I think thats how most wood turners and wood workers start selling their work. People see it; they would like to own it, and they convince you to let go of it. A sense of satisfaction and enjoyment coupled with the ability to replenish consumables without dipping into your regular budget puts you in business.”

Teaching other wood turners about how he approaches his work comes with a mantra of bits and pieces. Pulling from Napoleon Hill in his book Think and Grow Rich, Overman believes you start where you stand, and work with whatever tools you may have at your command, and better tools will be found as you go along. “Partnered with this comes the advice to use sandpaper like someone else is buying it, theres nothing new under the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:9), and I’m an ends justify the means artist. Use any tool, any idea, and any technique to get to the finished product because the goal is to get to the finished product.”

Ray Overman working on a new masterpiece

Overman describes the reclaimed and found wood he uses as a type of neighbor-wood, local trees that have been taken down for various reasons of decay or disease, but he also uses heirloom wood. Heirloom wood is from a tree that has a special meaning to a person and will be used to make a piece that will be passed down from generation to generation. This piece holds a specific memory of sorts for the family. Because Overman loves history, he is more sensitive to the wood he chooses. ”I like knowing where a tree grew and what may have happened under it the more texture, cracks, inclusions, and blemishes, the more character and stories a piece has to tell. Theres satisfaction in using something that was discarded to make art that people want to touch, hold, admire, and own.” With everything there are ebbs and flows. At times Overman has too many ideas and not enough time to produce them or he lacks the material to create the idea, but he’s happy where he is right now.